By LUCY OGALUE

The National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) says nearly 40 vehicle assembly plants are currently operational across Nigeria.

The Director-General of NADDC, Mr Joseph Osanipin said this at a One-Day Human-Centered Data & AI Master class for Commerce and Industry Correspondents Association of Nigeria (CICAN) on Thursday in Abuja.

The theme of the event is: “Reporting Nigeria’s Automative Transformation, from Policy to Production and Public Impact.”

The NADDC boss, represented by the Director, Public Relations, NADDC, Mrs Susan Taiwo, said the development represented significant progress, noting that Nigeria previously had no functioning vehicle assembly plant.

“By the special grace of God, we have almost 40 assembly plants now functioning,” Osanipin said.

He urged stakeholders to create greater awareness about developments in the automotive industry, saying the sector required sustained attention to realise its potential.

According to him, the automotive industry is no longer solely a government responsibility, but requires increased participation from private investors.

Osanipin said NADDC had supported the transition toward cleaner mobility through initiatives targeting Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and electric vehicles.

He said the council had commenced training programmes across the country on CNG vehicle conversion and installation.

The director-general said NADDC was also licensing commercial centres to undertake CNG conversion as part of efforts to expand the emerging ecosystem.

According to Osanipin, NADDC has licensed 80 CNG conversion centres nationwide and trained about 100 persons in each geo-political zone on vehicle conversion and installation.

He said that the council had installed pilot electric vehicle charging stations in some tertiary institutions.

Osanipin, however, urged private investors to establish more charging stations and CNG facilities across the country.

He said adequate infrastructure was necessary to give Nigerians confidence to adopt electric and CNG-powered vehicles.

The NADDC boss said Nigeria must keep pace with global developments in cleaner transportation technologies.

He urged investors to take advantage of emerging opportunities in the automotive sector, particularly CNG and electric mobility.

“Inadequate charging infrastructure remains a major obstacle to EV adoption.

“Investors need to come in and invest in these projects so that people using electric vehicles can travel confidently to their destinations,” Osanipin said. (NAN)